Boundaries, Battles, and Spiritual Armor

Boundaries, Battles, and Spiritual Armor

by Marge Purvis

with a little enhancement from Barb Shelton 

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What makes sticking to boundaries so difficult? Why do we struggle with just doing it?!

I am convinced that this is a spiritual battle. We are in a battle for healthy bodies and souls.

Battles, by their very nature, are hard and require the right equipment and preparedness of heart and mind.

Our enemy likes wimpy warriors – strong warriors who fall on their knees and seek their Heavenly commander terrify him.

Every time we put on God’s Armor and fight with our spiritual weapons, we gain ground… not to mention terrify the enemy.

But battles are not usually won once and for all. The enemy keeps coming back to challenge our reserve and our resolve.

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STANDING FIRM

The Apostle Paul challenges us to “Stand Firm.” The only way to fight is by putting on the whole Armor of God as laid out in Ephesians 6:10-11.

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We’ve all read and heard this passage many times, but let’s read it again and ask God to take it deeper in us, especially in this arena of our battle with our boundaries with food and eating:

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  (Ephesians 6:11-17)

We fall when we put on God’s Armor in the morning and then lay it down and forget about it…  until we all of a sudden find ourselves experiencing defeat. Even though our Heavenly Father is with us 24/7, we get busy and gradually weaken.

Then comes the condemnation that we put on ourselves. “The club of condemnation” is not a piece of God’s Armor. It’s definitely a weapon, but it’s one the enemy uses to advance toward and against us. What we need is to take on weapons of righteousness. Like those found in 2 Corinthians 10:4:

“For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.”

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HELPFUL, PRACTICAL ARMOR

So today choose to wear that Armor of God all day. Here are a few forms it may take:

Reminders posted where you can see them. Like truths God shows you as you are putting on that Armor at the beginning of the day. (These Love Notes from Jesus are in the form of a free printable by Barb Shelton. The video and this form are in Barb’s “Let’s DO This” group on Facebook.)

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Truth Cards and Verses are a great way to keep these handy. Write them on cards or sticky notes.  (Here’s an article – Truth Cards 101 – with lots of ideas and helps for making your own Truth Cards:)

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A written prayer (by Barb Shelton) to pray when you start to weaken and realize you are open and vulnerable for a sneak attack.

Lord, my heart’s desire is that my thoughts, focus and purpose – now and in life in general – would be based on and all wrapped up in YOU, not in desiring more food or longingly looking forward to what and when I can eat next.

I do not want to give up my birthright of having a well-functioning body for “one more [unneeded] bowl of…” any food I just had for a meal that would take beyond my boundary of “5” if I were to eat more of it.

Lord, by your mighty power at work in me, I do not want to listen to or heed my head hunger, to give in to the temptation to eat outside of my boundaries.  In­stead… I am choosing right now to DIE to my “flesh machinery” that just wants to eat eat eat, more more and more! YOU are my food and drink, my highest joy!!!!! ALL the time!! Not just when I’m walking in victory!

I bring my broken appetite to You at the foot of the cross and ask You to put it to death…  and replace it with the appetite You designed for me when You created me.

Would You show me one more good thing about abiding in You? Lord, I want to be normal-in-You! And I know my only hope for this is walking close to You, allowing You to do Your work deep in me!! “For apart from You, I can do nothing”! 

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(And back to Marge as we close:)

So today I join you in fighting this battle.
God is on our side and He will give the victory!

~ Marge Purvis ~

 

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Marge Purvis

See her bio below.

Truth Lists for the Real-Life Journey

Truth Lists for the Real-Life Journey

If you’ve been connected with Thin Within for longer than ten minutes, you’ve heard Heidi and Christina talk about Truth Lists.

These can help you get a breakthrough in an area of your life that is currently tripping you up, keeping you bound, or bringing you confusion or downright misery.

 

A Truth List is an excellent tool for renewing your mind. In fact, I’d call it “mind renewing on steroids”! Or a “fast-track to a sound mind” in an area you know you’re not sound in! It can really pack a punch to any wrong thinking that’s currently holding you captive, ineffective, or stymied in a certain area.

There is no one best or right way to do a Truth List. You just want it to include truths that will help you view a real-life situation the way God views it — which is the only right way, because God’s way is the only way that will bring healing and wholeness! Nothing else can or will free us from our wrong thinking — thinking that can derail us, spiral us downward into sadness or depression, or take us in a wrong direction. 

How to make one? Where to start? … Just with something anything that is currently bothering you, keeping you from walking in victory, joy, or freedom, or something that continually nags at you, robbing you of peace.

As you will see below, each Truth List is completely different. None of them followed any rules. Each has its own style and focus. Some are long, some are short.

Some were shared in our small coaching group, where I gathered them for this article, and one of them I transcribed from a porch chat by Christina.

I share these with you today in hopes that they will open up for you the wonderful world of creating a Truth List for a real-life aspect of your journey!

 

 


Truth List about My Weakened Physical Condition

by Heidi

 

What is true:  I am not my activity level. I am not my energy level.

However, God’s truth about this is that…

🌷 I am a child of the king no matter what my energy level.

🌷 I am a princess bride.*

🌷 No matter how I feel physically, I am part of a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a person who belongs to God.

🌷 No matter what condition my body is in, I have been called out of darkness and into his marvelous light to declare his praises…

🌷 And that is who I am most fundamentally. No matter how I feel physically or what infection I may be fighting or what blood clot is in my body, if any, I have been purchased with the precious blood of Christ.

🌷 No matter what I look like or how emaciated my body may be, no matter how little muscle or how weak I am physically, I am the temple of the Holy Spirit.

 

 

*And, speaking of “princess bride,” I have a special treat for you!! Here is the beautiful Princess-Bride Heidi herself on her Wedding Day, with several of her Thin Within sisters! (From left to right:  Emily Felts (featured in the next section), me / Barb Shelton, Christina Motley, Heidi Bylsma Epperson, Judy Halliday (founder of Thin Within!), Jan Tabrizi, and Karon Ruiz)

 

And here are Heidi and her handsome Prince-Groom, Michael Epperson! (Wedding Day: June 29,2019)  Michael MADE the chocolate cake, which was amaaaazing!!!

 

 


Truth List about Restoration and Freedom

by Heidi, Emily, and Bridget

 

Heidi asked our small coaching group: “Please share the truths you have added (or could add) to your truth cards or truth list from Hunger Within chapter 2.”

The first ones with the pink flowers 🌸 are by Heidi; the next ones with the white flowers 🌼 are from Emily; and the last ones with the sunflowers 🌻 are from Bridget. Thank you, ladies, for sharing your contributions!

 

Heidi:

🌸 I CAN be healed and restored through God’s power.

🌸 I CAN be set free from disordered eating.

🌸 In my attempts to “manage” or “control” the impact food and eating has on me, I create entanglements that enslave me even more!

🌸 Fixed formulas of restraint and a constant fear of failing will never work.

🌸 Any formula that prevents failure also prevents freedom!

🌸 I need to develop new and appropriate coping techniques to replace the disordered behaviors of my past.

🌸 It is entirely possible that all of the changes that need to be made are so threatening to me that I will be tempted to back away from having my grave clothes unwrapped and keep the grave clothes bound around me. I may even want to flee back into the tomb and pull the stone over the entrance.

 

Emily Felts:

🌼 As I accept the challenge of freedom and resolve the pain hidden beneath my eating, I am free to enjoy a peaceful relationship with food and my body.

🌼 God’s gift to me is resurrection — restoration and recovery.

🌼 Recovery from disordered eating is not only possible; it is what God intends.

🌼 Today I present myself to Jesus, ready to have my grave clothes removed: to give voice to my hunger within, and — in His presence — to listen to myself, body, mind, and soul.

🌼 God is in control of this process and he will comfort and sustain me.  (from page 62)

🌼 My security and significance come from experiencing an intimate relationship with God.

🌼 An intimate relationship with God begins as I believe I can be restored and that God accepts me as I am, with all my flaws and frailties.

 

Bridget:

🌻 God’s restoration work is far more wonderful than the temporary relief of our weight problems.  (from page 47)

🌻 By eating low fat and living by rules, I’ve created entanglements that enslave me even more. Hunger within is still active and rules will not kill it. Rules will not bury it because it’s not dead. It is very much alive.

🌻 Food rules and restrictions will not set me free.

🌻 Losing weight will not change my life.

🌻 Diets promise freedom and deliverance but don’t deliver it.  (from page 46)

🌻 As He did for Lazarus, Jesus waited to help me:

  1. so that I’d be ready to hear and obey;
  2. because He knows that as sick and desperate as I am, this will not end in death; and 
  3. that HE will be glorified in this deliverance and restoration.

 

 

 


Truth/Gratefulness List about my Teenage Daughter

by Christina

 

Those of you who have, or have had, teenage daughters know that it can be extremely challenging at times to communicate with and deal with some of the issues,  communication challenges, and struggles that they have as they are growing up.

When I was having a particularly difficult season with her, I decided I needed to come up with a truth list, but I also needed to practice gratitude for her, so I incorporated gratitude into it. So whenever we were together and I was having a hard time, those thoughts of gratitude would came up in my mind and my heart and renew my mind about her.

I also want to invite God into the situation of parenting a teenager. So, for example, I might have a prayer time where I am focusing on just gratitude for her.

🌻 Lord, I am so thankful that she and I can get together and talk.

🌻 I am so thankful that she still opens up to me and tells me secret things, and confides in me.

🌻 I’m thankful that she confides in me about her friends and relationships.

🌻 Lord, I am so thankful for the times that she and I laugh together! We get silly and laugh and roll on the floor and giggle and have such a good time!

🌻 Lord, I am so thankful for my snuggle times with her! Even though, she sometimes pushes me away, as teenagers do, we still get on the couch and watch a favorite show together and snuggle.

🌻 Thank you so much that she and I go on coffee dates together. She loves that, and it draws her back to me. It’s a little something I can do for her.

🌻 Lord, thank you for my daughter. She is creative. She is smart. She is funny. She is passionate. She is a good friend to others. And I am grateful for all her good qualities right now.

 

 


Truth List Regarding Insecurity and Inadequacy

by Christina

 

This truth list is written in the form of a paragraph rather than a list, but it’s all the same truth. And I have been praying through it often lately! I am hoping that God will use it in some way with one of you!

I am really struggling with insecurity and inadequacy. I have just prayed through the insecurity questions in Barb Raveling’s book, I Deserve a Donut, and she is right. God’s view of me is so completely different than my view of myself! And what does the world see? “Oh… she has a lot going on but she can handle it.” And there is a part of me that fears that the people out there beyond my family are thinking “She doesn’t have time for me.  …  She doesn’t care about me.  …  I am not important to her.”

I have been trying so hard to take care of everything and everyone, and there is just not enough of me to go around. I am not strong enough, not healthy enough, not wise enough, and there is just not enough time to do it all. I have been giving myself no margin to just rest and be.

Even my rest times have been busy, taken quickly in the living room and working on things while laying down.

God hasn’t called me to be everything to everyone. God hasn’t called me to be perfect. God hasn’t called me to live and breathe in my own strength. God hasn’t called me to figure it all out or know all the answers…

God has called me to be His. To let Him. To submit to Him. To rest in Him. To trust Him. To surrender to Him. To let Him be my strength. To invite Him into everything, and I mean everything.

God has called me to lay down my weapons, to stop striving and to let Him lead me, even carry me at times. God has called me to give Him my heart. But there is peace in surrender. Sweet, pure, perfect and supernatural peace. And that is what I am desperately longing for.

 

 

 


Truth List about Having an Illness

by Christina

 

Here is the Truth List that Jesus and I put together a while back about one of my biggest challenges — my illness. You can easily change it up to fit your own needs. Hope this helps and encourages you in some way!

🌳 Jesus is my healer.

🌳 Jesus is healing me.

🌳 Jesus is in full control of the Lyme Disease treatment process.

🌳 Jesus knows and sees what I am going through… every symptom, its severity, its duration, and how I am limited because of it.

🌳 Jesus knows that the way I feel physically is very closely connected to the way I feel emotionally and spiritually.

🌳 Jesus sees and understands what I am grieving as a result of Lyme Disease. He grieves with me.

🌳 Jesus has not forgotten me.

🌳 Jesus is not confused or tired or absent or busy with other things.

🌳 Jesus hears and answers every prayer that is said for me by myself or someone else.

🌳 Jesus is in control of the timing of this journey and His timing is always perfect.

🌳 Jesus is using this trial for His own perfect plans and purposes in my life, and in my family and friends’ lives.

🌳 Jesus is strong in my weakness.

🌳 Jesus will provide what is needed for whatever He is asking of me.

🌳 Jesus is my Savior… not people, not food, not distraction, not what I can do or accomplish.

🌳 Jesus calls me to surrender to Him every moment of every day in the midst of this challenging journey.

🌳 Jesus calls me to love Him with my whole heart and to let Him order and arrange and prioritize my days.

🌳 Jesus will complete the work that He is doing in me.

🌳 Jesus is protecting me daily from much, much worse.

🌳 Jesus is doing a work in my heart.

🌳 Jesus will cause everything about this journey to work together for my good and the good of those I love.

🌳 Jesus is mine and I am His.

🌳 Jesus has chosen me to be His beloved girl, redeemed and washed clean and radiant in His sight.

🌳 Jesus does absolutely nothing outside of His boundless love and relentless grace for me.

🌳 Jesus will never fail me.

🌳 Jesus is with me.

🌳 Jesus has me.

 

 

 


Truth List about Eating with my Family:

by Christina

 

🍔 Eating with my family is a precious gift from God.

🍔 My family includes three fun, silly, interesting teenagers and I love the stories that are shared at the table!

🍔 In a few years we will have an empty nest and I will miss family dinners.

🍔 Truly celebrating and enjoying family dinners has nothing to do with eating too much food.

🍔 Eating God’s way at dinner honors God and the precious gift he has given me in my family.

🍔 Being the last one to take a first bite ensures that I am being a servant of my family.

🍔 When I take even smaller portions, eat at a ridiculously slow pace, choose water as a beverage and listen to my body I am surrendering to God’s way of eating and that feels GOOD.

🍔 True freedom is being able to say “That’s just enough.”

🍔 God’s way is always best for me!

 

 

 


Truth List about Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake & Anything Chocolate Chip:

by Christina

 

This has to do with emotional attachment to a food. There is a certain cake in our family that is very very important. Why? What’s the big deal?

Well, growing up, my mom was not a cook or a baker, and so she had just a couple of recipes that were very special. She needed some kind of go-to for potlucks, birthdays, and special events. She had one cake that she made my entire childhood – a Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake. It’s really easy to make, and it’s absolutely delicious!

That means every birthday, every gathering with others we loved and cared for, every church potluck, every time people came to visit, we had that cake! It was also special to me because my mom would involve my brother and I while she made it! And it would be a big deal… we would put in the eggs, and mix the batter, and make sure to alternate the flour and the sour cream…  it was like an art on how to make this ONE special cake! And then we got to lick the bowl – who gets the spoon and the beaters? So you can imagine how special this cake was in our family!

Several years ago, my mom wasn’t able to make it anymore because of the Alzheimer’s Disease. But still do! I can make it in my sleep. I can whip it up in 10 minutes and have it in the oven. I try to make it often, and not just for special occasions. I also make it for my parents because it’s special to them.

(Here’s Maddie — center — with one of these cakes for her birthday! That’s Christina’s mom, Silke, on the left, and Christina on the right!)

So you can imagine how emotionally attached I am to this cake! And how impossible it seems to eat 0-5 with it. When I make the batter, I just want to eat the whoooole thing!

For years I didn’t really understand why! I thought: What is the big deal?!?!? Why do I have NO self control whatsoever with this one food? It’s a go-to for me, if I’m feeling very sad, or very angry, or upset…  or celebratory!

And everything chocolate chip has become a go-to for me because of that cake: chocolate chip muffins, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chip granola bars and scones, chocolate chips in yogurt, ice cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, chocolate chip mint ice cream, and shakes…

One day the Lord and I sat down together and we did some journaling. Well, *I* did the writing, and I tried to listen while He talked. I asked:

“Lord, I want to understand! I don’t want this to master me! Will You help me? Show me what’s going on here? And show me what is true from Your perspective so that I can make and enjoy this cake! And not eat to an 8 every time I do, and then I feel awful!”

So first, He showed me why I have this very strong emotional attachment to anything chocolate chip. (All the above that I’ve shared.)

And here is my very short Truth List about Chocolate Chip Cake: Only three truths, but it’s enough; it’s power-packed and it’s enough to help me each time I’m getting ready to bake it or eat it, or anything chocolate chip…

🍪 Chocolate chips do not own me; they remind me of love and nurturing from my mom and Omama.

🍪 I am not mastered by anything chocolate chip. I’m not! It’s just food! I’m NOT!

🍪 Chocolate chip foods do not provide comfort, love, nurturing, energy, or healing. They don’t! They don’t provide ANY of that!

 

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As a special treat (quite literally), I thought it would be fun to see Christina’s Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake recipe itself! And she graciously consented to allowing me to include it right here! She doesn’t need it herself as she has it memorized and can make it in her sleep! But she wrote this one for a friend and had her get a picture of it just for this blog post! (Yes, she is that wonderful!)

 

And it looks like it is well used! Hopefully the Truth Lists in this article will be, too!

(Be sure to use Christina’s last Truth List if you make this recipe or anything chocolate chip, if this is a challenge for you as well!)

 


 

Thank you, Christina and Heidi for your candid contributions to this blog post!

And blessings on you, our dear reader and fellow sojourner, and on your process of using any/all of the above Truth Lists, as well as coming up with your own! – which we would love to see! Please feel free to share in a comment!

 


 

 

A Berry Fruitful Lesson

A Berry Fruitful Lesson

I’d been picking berries over a period of a few days, trying to gather enough to make a batch of blackberry freezer jam and a blackberry pie ~ that I had a tiny piece of on a tiny plate, of course!

 

And, in so picking, I noticed something interesting that I hadn’t given much thought to before:  that the berries on a bunch all ripen at different times! Only one or two berries in any given bunch are ready to pick at any given moment.

For your farming education and berry-viewing pleasure, here’s a photo that I took of said berries, and then drew circles around each of the many bunches. (You may notice that a few of the bunches are lacking a dark, ripened berry ~ this is because I had already picked them off!)

 

This is similar to how I see myself as coming into “fruition” regarding growing in and applying principles of the Thin Within message! There are many areas ~ in Thin Within and in my life as well ~ that I’d like to be adept at all at once. Like immediately!!!  

But, alas, I am a slow learner. And  :::sigh:::  some days go better ~ and some worse ~ than others.

Just when I think I have one area conquered, I fail miserably the next day, as if I’m starting from ground zero! UGH!!!!! I know I’m really not, but some days it just seems like it!

Getting specific

One cluster of berries represents several areas that I need and want to grow and become more mature and skilled in! Like what, you ask?

Well, like…  waiting for zero…  stopping at 5…  which equals eating withing my 0 to 5 boundaries…

creating my truth cards…  reviewing my truth cards…  getting truths on my truth cards into my mind and heart…

drinking more water…  being more faithful at renewing my mind…  being more consistent at working in my workbooks…

eating more slowly…  exercising 0–5…  applying myself to conscious and undistracted eating…

running to Jesus instead of to food for comfort or help in decision-making…

truth journaling…  letting go of the dieting mentality…  learning to not beat myself up when I fail…

allowing God’s truth to replace lies…  for that matter, learning to even recognize lies!!!

And these are not things that I feel bound to do; they are things that God will use to set me FREE, “if I don’t get discouraged (or distracted) and give up”!!!

In fact, since I am berry ~ I mean very visual, I went ahead and labeled most of the individual berries in the bunch in the photo above so that you could visualize exactly what I mean right along with me!

(The above varying berry stages are not exact representations of MY actual maturity in these areas!)

 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could mature in all of the areas we want, all at the same time!?! But that’s not too likely given the fact that we are human, weak, and imperfect.

But, as long as we are on the Vine, and remain connected to Him, who is also the Vine Dresser, we will mature! And I assure you that it won’t be because of our own ability to hang on! It will be because of His life-giving, transforming grace that flows through the veins of our souls and nourishes, grows us up, and ripens us in the “wisdom and stature of the Lord”! In fact, He even helps us to hang on!

So as we “seek him first,” all these berries – I mean things – will be added unto us!

I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

 

Heavy on the “apart from Me you can do nothing” bit!!! And thinking I can when I’m on a good streak is part of the wrong thinking that needs to be renewed in my mind!

Since that verse is about grapes, I thought it would be appropriate to include a photo of grapes ~ which turned out to be prettier than the blackberries! Aren’t the variations in color as they ripen amazing?!?! (Wish I looked this pretty as I’m ripening!!!)

 

Let’s close by praying through that same verse:

Lord, You are the vine, and I am one of your branches. My heart’s desire is to remain in You, and for You to remain in me, so I ask You to help me do this, Lord! Help me allow You to transform the “home of my heart” into a place You are comfortable residing in.

I want to be a fruitful branch of Yours, and to produce much tasty fruit, but I know this is a byproduct of allowing You to live Your life in and through me! For, apart from You, Lord, I can do nothing! (As in ZIPPO… NADA… ZILCH!!!)

Thank You for choosing to dwell in my heart, Lord!!! … Aaaaaaamen!!!!

 

 

Truth Cards 101

Truth Cards 101

One of the best tools for renewing our minds is Truth Cards! As you’ll see herein, there are many ways to do them, and no one right or best way! Thank you to all the ladies who allowed me to use their truth cards as samples to give you even more ideas than just mine!

 

I’m going to give you several options for styles of Truth Cards as well as how and where you can find content for them! You may, like me, want to do a combination of various styles, so be sure to read all of these to get ideas beyond what you might have thought of thus far!

To become more familiar with the concept, watch this video by Heidi Bylsma entitled “Truth Cards -Thin Within Support“! Have a note pad handy as she shares several of her own truth cards that you can use as ideas for making yours!

 

 

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5 CONTENT SOURCE IDEAS

 

 1) BIBLE VERSES

As you’re reading the Word, you might find a verse that, prior to now, didn’t seem like it would pertain to renewing your mind regarding food, but all of a sudden it takes on new meaning! You’ll also come across some really helpful verses in a Thin Within book, workbook, or a related resource, like Barb Raveling’s Freedom From Emotional Eating. For example:

“He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6)

 

 2) EXCERPTS FROM BOOKS & VIDEOS

These can be from any reading you do, Thin Within or not. It can be anything that stands out to you as being TRUTH that you want to capture and go deeper in you. Or the quotes can be things you hear in a video, such as the ones Heidi and Christina provide.

“I really can choose to put to death the deeds of the flesh and say no to ________.  … I am free to offer my body to God for righteousness.” (from Thin Within, page 140)

 

 3) QUESTIONS FROM BOOKS

Barb Raveling’s books typically have many questions. These are to help us process the material for ourselves. Heidi has turned several of these into truth cards! For example:

“What will happen if you continue to reward yourself with food whenever you accomplish something?” (from “Reward Eating” in I Deserve a Donut by Barb Raveling)

 

 4) TRUTHS & TRUTH SAYINGS

These can be any truths or sayings you hear in passing, reading through posts in a Thin Within group or elsewhere on social media, or something God drops into your heart that you want to be sure to keep. It can be something profound, funny, or just helpful. For example, I found several in A Taste For Truth a 30-day study by Barb Raveling. I also turned something Heidi said into a photo truth card:

 

 

 5) YOUR OWN “BEFORE” PICTURE

Heidi wrote under hers: “Life without boundaries; do you really want to go there?” (So we aren’t out to disdain ourselves!) Here’s mine using her idea:

 

If you are on the Thin Within journey and are using even just one or two of their many resources, most of the above content opportunities are coming at ~ splashing on ~ you all the time! Grab ones you like and get them onto Truth Cards so that you’ll have these life-changing, heart-transforming, mind-renewing truths in a format you can refer back to and get imbedded in your mind and heart! They will actually become part of your spiritual DNA!

 

 

5 TRUTH CARD STYLES

 

There are several methods for making Truth Cards, and I enjoying using all of them! But if you want to stick with just one that you’re comfortable with, that’s totally fine!

Most start with a simple pack of spiral-bound index cards. The ones I got are 4X6″ and have lines on one side. I’m currently using the plain side to make mine. I’ll eventually hand-write on the lined side. Here’s the card pack I’m using:

There are other ways to do them (as you’ll see in a moment), but having them spiral-bound keeps them all in one place, making it easy to go through them.

In the Thin Within Discussion and Support group, people have posted lots of Truth Cards that they have made! (I’ll tell you at the end of this post how to easily find them!) I’m sharing a few of those truth cards herein so that you can see the variety of styles right here in one spot.

You can do them on your computer or totally free-hand; you can decorate them or just leave them plain! Here are several style options with samples of each.

 

 1) HAND-WRITTEN – PLAIN ‘N’ SIMPLE

You can write or print your cards freehand, in your own simple handwriting or fancy-schmancy calligraphy.

 

Judith Eastham made these two:

 

Jodi Ghere did her truth cards lengthwise:

(Start at the bottom and read upward! The word “grace” ends up covering you, with “the law” being under grace!)

 

 2) CREATE ON YOUR COMPUTER

For those who are computer-savvy, creating them this way is fun and handy! You’ll want to create a template, test it out, and adjust font sizes and margins to make sure your cards fit whatever cards you’ll be putting them onto. (I have a free printable for you further down!)

Here’s one I made using a photo I took and combining a verse with a truth:

         .

Barbi Oakley Curtis created these three Truth Cards on her computer:

 

 

Kathryn Felts printed and then cut out the verse, glued it on to a card…

…and then cut out pictures (nostalgically appealing to all of us paper doll lovers of yesteryear!) that go sweetly with the verse, and glued them on around the verse.

 

Here’s one I made; how I decorated it is in #4 in the “Scrapbookesque” section below.

 

 

 3) HAND-WRITTEN & DECORATED 

Those who enjoy doodling, crafting, and cut-and-pasting (literally, like with actual glue) can embellish their Truth Cards with papers, fancy fonts and/or pictures they get from magazines, newspapers, etc.

 

Amy Flink made this one:

 

This was made by Kathryn Felts:

 

Deanna Lewis hand-printed this and added a strip of designer paper on the left:

 

 4) SCRAPBOOKESQUE

I type up my truths on my computer, and then format them into the size that fits onto whatever page I want it to go in. (I only had to format once, after that I just enter my truth sayings, and then resize the font to fit into that template.) Then I print them from my computer, and create mini scrapbook-like pages with using scrapbooking supplies I have on hand.

 

I used corner punches, designer papers, and a die for the scallops.

(This one above is a different size/shape from the free printable that I’ll give you shortly.) 

 

Cynthia Sullivan gathered scriptures she found in magazines and that people gave her, cut them out, and glued them onto index cards:

 

Marge Purvis’ sister had these made for her, with her name inserted into the verses!

 

(If I got any truth card credits wrong, or missed you, pleeeease let me know!)

 

 5) FLIP CALENDAR ALTERING:

Christina Motley suggested getting a flip calendar (old or new) and choosing verses from it that would work as Truth Cards. I loooove Thomas Kinkade’s art, so here is the Thomas Kinkade flip calendar I got:

 

For example, here’s one of the inside pages…

 

To transform it into a Truth Card, rip it out of the calendar, trim it, and glue it to a card in your card pack. Fast and simple! And it fit perfectly on the 4″X6″ card!

 

[OCD WARNING!!!]  I didn’t like having the date on there, out of context, so I covered it with a little punched-out piece that I wrote a related mini prayer on:

(You could just as easily write on a rectangular piece.)

 

 

 MORE TRUTH CARD IDEAS!

 

First, here’s that FREE PRINTABLE! 24 Truth Cards that I created. 20 of them are just text, the last 4 are photos + text on the photos. Here are screenshots of them:

 

 

 

 

You are welcome to decorate them any way you like! Or just use these for ideas to hand-print your own! Here are the downloadable files:

 

24 Truth Cards (Word file / EDITABLE)

24 Truth Cards (PDF / NOT EDITABLE)

 

There are many ideas in the Thin Within Discussion & Support group!!! Amy Flink and Cathy Maher posted hundreds of pictures of their own Truth Cards! (Thank you, ladies!!!)

You will not necessarily print these out and use them (though you could), but this is a treasure trove of truth card statement ideas!!! Plus you can get ideas for how to decorate them, if that doesn’t come naturally to you! Here’s what they look like, once you get to that area:

 

 

HOW TO FIND THEM

Go to the Thin Within Discussion & Support group, click “join” if you aren’t a member, once you are (a member), click on “Photos” and scroll down to 2014. They’re easy to spot, as many of them are lumped together, as above!

Here’s how it looks on my computer. You can see “Photos” in the column on the left side.

 

Here’s the same page on my phone ~ “Photos” is circled in red. (File locations vary on different phones, but at least you have two ideas of where to look.)

 

Once you’re in Photos, scroll all the way down to the bottom, January 2014, and they’ll be nearby. Scrolling up…  and up…  and up…  you’ll find LOTS of Truth Card ideas!

 

 

 

I’d love to see any Truth Cards YOU create!

 

 

“CHANGED!” A Testimony by Christina

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Every year the Lord gives me a word for the new year.  In December of 2012, I began to pray about what the word would be.  Almost immediately the Lord said my word was “change”.  With that being such a simple word, I thought that just couldn’t possibly be it–but it was!  And one of the things the Lord said would be changing is my eating.  So being the planner that I am, I started to decide for myself what that change would look like.  Following my emotions and compulsiveness, I decided that God no longer wanted me following Weight Watchers, but wanted me ordering powdered shake mixes to follow a regimen of drinking shakes and doing cleanses.  The Lord let me go along with it, and after a few days in the beginning of January of drinking shakes and being told when, what, and how to eat, I was humbled and confessed that I made the wrong decision.  Oops!  I knew that change still needed to take place in my eating, so I began to search again.  This time the search led me to contacting a naturopath, hoping to figure some things out with my body.  Again, I followed my emotions and was compulsive.  And the Lord let me go along with this as well.  I was told not to eat carbohydrates or sugar.  And so I began that quest and discovered very quickly that I felt very deprived and, after awhile, fearful that if I ate those two “don’ts” that I was damaging my body and tempting God.

And so began (or continued) my struggle.  I had never been so fearful about food in all my life.  I was constantly being attacked in my mind about food.  I wrote SO many journal entries about this, going back and forth about what I should do.  I wanted to go back to Weight Watchers SO badly, but I didn’t feel peace doing that.  I also didn’t have peace following the naturopath’s regimen.  And then one day in March, the Lord led me to look at Heidi’s blog.  I hadn’t looked at it in a couple of years.  And immediately, as I began to read her posts, peace entered my heart.  It was the first time in months that I felt peace and comfort in the area of food.  It was like the Lord shone His light and said, “This is what I want you to be doing.  This is the change I intended.”

That peace remained in my heart for a short time until I began entertaining the dieting and restrictive thoughts again.  I was really hung up on the lie that eating carbohydrates and sugar would damage my body–that it would basically kill me.  I was being tormented in my mind.  When the enemy tries to bring fear, he likes to ask the “what if” and “what about” questions.  There was a major battle going on in my mind and I had a very hard time getting out of it.

I knew from personal experience and from what Heidi was sharing about renewing our mind, that truth was the only way I was going to win the battle that was going on in my mind.  The hard part was pushing past the “what abouts” the enemy was throwing at me constantly.  I had to get to a place where I absolutely could ONLY believe and focus on what the Lord says in His Word about eating and food.  I wrote out scripture after scripture on notecards about how God has blessed ALL foods, about how no one had right to judge me in food or drink, about how I was to set aside what the world was saying and fix my eyes on Jesus, etc.  And every day I read through those cards 2-3 times a day, sometimes less, sometimes more.  It wasn’t easy at first, but after awhile those truths began to resonate in my heart.  I also asked different ones to pray for me.  After awhile I recognized that it wasn’t so much of a battle about food, but it was the enemy trying to lead me down the path of fear.  Fear comes in all shapes and sizes.  The enemy will tempt us with fear about EVERY thing in life.  But God and His word is bigger and more powerful than any lie the enemy throws at us.  The Word of God is our weapon!  It never returns void.  It goes out and accomplishes what God has set for it to do.  The truth sets us free!

So little by little, every single day, every single time I read those scriptures, the Lord was setting me free!  By mid-June I was walking in victory over this food battle.  Praise the Lord!

And then the next part of the journey began.  The second phase of the Renewing of the Mind Weight Loss Bible study started mid-June on Heidi’s blog.  The Lord blessed me with an accountability partner and I began the next phase of my journey.  This part of the journey included overcoming the diet mentality and finding truth about Weight Watchers.

Would you believe that I subscribed and cancelled my Weight Watchers subscription probably 4-5 times since January?  You better believe it!  It’s quite embarrassing, but that shows right there how hard it was to break free from those chains.

Let me give you a little history about my experience with Weight Watchers.  About 4 years ago I was at my heaviest weight, which is about 30 pounds heavier than I am currently.  I knew all about Thin Within and normal eating.  I felt that I had “tried” eating 0-5, but really, I wasn’t committed and found every excuse to eat.  I had just come through a lot of emotional healing, which unfortunately was combined with emotional eating.  We had also been trying for a child for about 5 years at this point and I was very discouraged.  So I ate.  And ate.  I felt disgusting.  I felt discouraged about normal eating not working for me (even though that was a lie I was believing), so I prayed about doing Weight Watchers.  The Lord allowed me to follow Weight Watchers for about 3 years, except for when I was pregnant or breastfeeding.  I always kept in mind listening to my body’s hunger cues and I knew better to eat if I was hungry, even if I didn’t have extra points.  That doesn’t mean I didn’t feel guilty about it, but I knew that listening to my body was more important than a points allotment.  I lost weight and then lost weight again after pregnancy.  Toward the last few months of following Weight Watchers, I began to lose my peace.  And when the Lord told me that my word for this year was “change” and that would involve even my eating, I knew I would be kissing Weight Watchers goodbye.

Up until the last part of August of 2013, I was really struggling with thinking about going back to Weight Watchers. My accountability partner encouraged me to commit myself to a certain amount of time with Thin Within.  The Lord told me 90 days, which would end September 11th.  I went back and forth about Weight Watchers, with it as a constant afterthought.  Whenever I felt like I failed with eating 0-5, I would tell myself that I just need to go back to tracking points.  And sometimes I would be so tempted that I would actually subscribe to Weight Watchers online again, but never actually track points.  Why didn’t I actually end up tracking?  Because there was NO peace!  The Lord kept putting His foot down and would NOT release me back to Weight Watchers.

Heidi has talked a lot recently about truth cards.  I have a little notebook with about 50 cards filled out with scriptures, truths from Heidi’s blog, tidbits from the Thin Within book and from Intuitive Eating (my other favorite book about normal eating), and quotes.  I read through these cards about twice a day.  I had lots of truths written down about how I don’t want to diet anymore and about why dieting (Weight Watchers) is not something I want to do.  But I was still struggling with going back to Weight Watchers!

Finally, toward the end of August, I emailed my accountability partner and Heidi, asking for prayer and help with my thoughts about Weight Watchers.  Heidi shared an idea that was so powerful to me that it honestly rocked this whole mental roadblock.  She basically said that maybe my thoughts about Weight Watchers was bringing some kind of “drama” into my life that I was actually, in a weird way, enjoying.  Like, that I needed something to fixate on and Weight Watchers was that thing.  It was creating this drama, this thing for my brain to constantly go on and on about.  One word came to my mind: obsession.  I was OBSESSED with thinking about Weight Watchers.  This wasn’t new to me.  The enemy has used lots of things over the years to encourage me to obsess over.  Little obsessions.  Big obsessions.  When I realized that this was just something that was trying to get my attention and create drama, I was like, “There is no way I’m entertaining this anymore!”  And I made the decision not to entertain the Weight Watchers temptation anymore!  I was done!

And really, just like that, the obsession was gone.  It was all the Lord.  It was like I had to surrender that drama to the Lord.  He gladly took it.  And now when I read those truth cards about how Weight Watchers IS a diet and the damage dieting does, I can nod my head in agreement, with NO temptation to go back!  Praise God!

So since starting the Thin Within journey, in 6 months the Lord has freed me from the bondage about fear of food AND about being on a diet.  I PRAISE God for what He has done!  His work is marvelous!!

This was something I wrote in a comment recently on Heidi’s blog.  It pretty much sums up my thoughts on truth cards and the importance of renewing our mind:

Renewing our mind is VITAL to becoming a normal, intuitive, Thin Within eater! I wish I would have realized this truth many years ago when I was “trying” to eat 0-5. I had so many hang-ups and wrong thoughts about it. But now I have truth cards that I read every day at least twice and they are packed full of truths from the Word, from the TW book, from this (Heidi’s blog), from other ‘normal eating’ material, and tidbits of truths I have found here and there. The first few months I felt like it was more of a burden to read the truth cards, like it was more of a duty than a privilege. But NOW it’s what I cling to and it’s VITAL in overcoming the battle I have had within my thoughts about food, body image, dieting, etc. 

Back in May I was struggling (almost being tormented) by thoughts about food. I was believing lies that I couldn’t eat certain foods and that if I did, that I was purposely damaging my health and tempting God. It was a HUGE battle! The Lord had me write out scriptures on notecards, which eventually became part of my truth cards, and it was after reading those cards over and over again that I began to see a breakthrough. God’s truth prevails! It doesn’t return void! It is our weapon! I have read through scripture cards like that before for other situations, such as fear. When we consistently wash our mind with His Word and truth, we are being renewed little by little. At first it may seem like a lot of work, but after awhile we see LIFE being brought back into our minds. The lies flee. Freedom reigns! It’s pretty awesome! 

I no longer deal with those thoughts about food. God has completely released me from those lies, that prison which held me. He continues to set me free daily from other mindsets I have struggled with. I am praising Him for what He has done and is doing!

I don’t know how else to emphasize on how very important it is to renew our minds in the area of our struggle with eating, dieting, and body image.  Honestly, if I would have understood this years ago, I would have been set free a lot earlier.  I’m thankful for the journey I have been on because I learned a lot along the way.  The beauty of having truth cards and renewing our mind is that even when we don’t think it’s working–it is!  God’s word is powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword!  He wants us to absorb these truths.  I think of the scripture Psalm 119:11, “Your word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”  I thought I would never be able to conquer the food thoughts I was being tormented with earlier this year, but as I began to bathe my mind with the Word, I saw victory through Christ!  The Lord helped me breakthrough and all I did was read those scripture cards that I had hand-written.  That’s it!  God did the rest!  I had to commit myself to writing them out and reading them; that was my part.  God honored His word.  He set me free!  And He WILL do the same for you!

I’m not perfect with 0-5 eating.  I have moments where I want to eat when I’m not hungry.  The next part of my journey is learning to delight in the boundaries God has set up for me in regards to eating.  I see Him working in me and I’m so excited!

There’s one more thing I want to share.  When I decided to commit to 90 days of Thin Within, I asked the Lord whether I should weigh myself after the 90 days were done.  He didn’t answer me right away, but then the answer came when I found out I was pregnant about 1/3 of the way through my commitment.  I’m one of those that doesn’t want to know weight gain in pregnancy until the very end.  So that pretty much solved that question.  And I think it’s so neat to be going through this part of the journey being pregnant, without the focus of weight loss (which is what I should be doing anyway), because I really get to mentally focus on finding peace with food and allowing God to help me with renewing my mind.  God is so good!

Oh, and in case if you were wondering, I did stay committed through September 11th, and I continue on!  Praise God!

What About You?

Can you identify with Christina’s turmoil? Do you find yourself playing along the perimeter, toying with 0 to 5 eating, but never really “buying in?” Do you leave in fear of “normal” food? Do diets seem to have the answer, but you don’t feel released to have peace dieting any more? What thought has Christina shared here that God is driving home to your own heart and mind? WIll you please share it with us here? We can commit to praying for you!